The Celtics Need To Do This To Take Down The Bucks This Friday

• While the Milwaukee Bucks are one of the best teams in the NBA, they’re beatable. The Boston Celtics split their season series 1-1, conceding defeat by just five points in their lone loss against them.

• Giannis Antetokounmpo is the engine that drives Milwaukee. If the Celtics can limit Antetokounmpo, run Khris Middleton off the three-point line, and get their trio of stars going, then they can upset the Bucks this Friday night.

• The Celtics (+170) are currently 4.5-point underdogs in their matchup with the Bucks (-200) this Friday. The consensus over/under stands at 218.5 total points. Head over to our game predictions page to see which bet our NBA model prefers in this Eastern Conference battle!

Slow Down Giannis

It goes without saying that when Giannis Antetokounmpo plays well, the Milwaukee Bucks are tough to beat. The Bucks come into this NBA restart with a record of 53-12, with the Greek Freak averaging 29.6 points and 13.7 rebounds per contest. He feels like a lock to win his second-straight MVP Award and seems to be getting better by the day. How can he be stopped?

Well, nobody has found a strategy to stop Antetokounmpo, but he can be contained. In their October 30th victory over the Bucks, the Boston Celtics corralled the Milwaukee star, limiting him to only 22 points. In their Game 1 victory in last year’s first round matchup (their only win of the series), the Celtics held Antetokounmpo to 7-of-21 shooting with only 22 points. The Greek Freak's plus-minus of -24 was the worst on the team. If the Celtics look to beat the Bucks, slowing the reigning MVP is their first priority.

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Get The Big Three Going

While nobody is saying the Celtics boast a superstar “big three”, they may be well on their way to a new version of this. Their main pieces are Kemba Walker, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylon Brown. While Walker has been around the block for years, Tatum and Brown are just coming into their own as of late. In fact, in their meeting with the Los Angeles Clippers before the All-Star break, Tatum exploded for 39 points on national television to steal a victory and officially put him on the map.

The Bucks are going to score in this game regardless of what the Celtics do, as they come into this one averaging more than 118 points per game. The Celtics could throw everything in the world at Antetokounmpo, but the team is still going to score 100 or more easily. It is what it is, and Boston knows that going in. Because of this, the Celtics are going to have to score to keep pace, and their best bet is to get their trio of Walker, Brown, and Tatum going. 

When these three get it going, they are tough to beat. Walker has shown the ability to light up the Brooklyn Nets, and Tatum has shown on a national stage that he can carry a team. If those two can bring their normal contributions, and Jaylon Brown can give a solid 20-point effort, you should feel good about taking the Celtics at +4.5. If all three come to play, lock in the Celtics moneyline (+170) to pull the upset.

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